Syracuse University football looks to continue road roll at Rutgers (video)

Frank Ordoñez / The Post-StandardSyracuse University running back Delone Carter scores a touchdown during last year's 33-13 Orange victory at the Carrier Dome.

Syracuse, NY -- The Syracuse University road show, which has played to rave reviews this fall, makes one last regular-season appearance away from the Carrier Dome on Saturday at Rutgers.

If the Orange (6-3, 3-2 Big East) can defeat the Scarlet Knights (4-4, 1-2), it will complete a run of four conference road wins in a season, something SU hasn’t done since Big East football play began in 1991.

More importantly, however, an Orange victory in the afternoon game at Piscataway, N.J. (3:30 p.m. on ESPNU) would cap a turnaround season under second-year head coach Doug Marrone and send the team off to its first bowl game in six years.

Nagging injuries continue to dog the Orange, but players say they’ll be ready.

“What I’ve seen is, you get through the week — at game-time you don’t feel those pains,” senior strong safety Max Suter said.

Suter, who has stayed healthy this season after missing the final three games of 2009 with a broken wrist, said focus and adrenaline should see the team through.

Middle linebacker Derrell Smith, the team’s defensive captain, said injuries are just a part of the season – especially during the stretch run.

“Around this time of year, all teams are banged up,” he said. “That’s not something unique to our team. I’m sure Rutgers has some banged-up players as well.”

The Orange will focus on getting its defense, ranked 10th nationally, back on track after allowing a Louisville offensive front to push it around in the second half of last week’s 28-20 loss in the Carrier Dome.

“We’re ready to go,” Suter said. “That game last week is gone. We can’t take that back. Whatever happened last week, happened last week. We corrected it.”

SU's defense will face a Rutgers offense which has struggled this season. A pair of quarterbacks has split eight starts for coach Greg Schiano.

Sophomore Tom Savage, a freshman All-American in 2009 after throwing for 2,211 yards and 14 TDs, injured his throwing hand against Tulane and has given way to freshman Chas Dodd.

Savage hasn’t been able to win the job back from Dodd, who started the last four games. Schiano has been quiet so far about this week’s starter.

One thing the Orange defense will likely get a healthy dose of is the “Wild Knight” offense, a wildcat formation in which a Rutgers wide receiver takes the center snap in a shotgun formation.

Sophomore Mohamed Sanu is the main man in the wildcat, but freshman Jeremy Deering is emerging as a secondary threat.

Sanu is the team’s leading rusher (285 yards, 5.3 yards per carry) and receiver (40 catches, 389 yards, 2 TDs), but he also has thrown two TD passes out of the Wild Knight. Deering has run 14 times for 94 yards out of the wildcat in Rutgers’ last two games, losses at Pittsburgh and South Florida.

“They’re getting a lot of production out of that (formation). It’s something that we have to be prepared for,” Marrone said.

Smith said the SU defense has been watching lots of video.

“That’s a plus for their offense — a very big part of their offense,” he said. “We’re definitely preparing for it.”

Marrone said Rutgers also has been opportunistic on special teams and defense.

“The thing that is very concerning for us, that they do very well, is they’re plus-six in turnovers,” Marrone said of the Scarlet Knights, who have taken the ball away from opponents 15 times and surrendered it only nine.

SU, on the other hand, is at minus one, with 14 takeaways. But the Orange has given up the ball 15 times, 10 on fumbles and five on interceptions.

On offense, the Orange will certainly try to run the ball against a Rutgers’ defense that gives up 138 yards per game on the ground. SU also will try to protect quarterback Ryan Nassib a little better, after the redshirt sophomore was harassed by a blitzing Cardinals’ defense last week.

Starting right tackle Michael Hay should be back in the lineup, although Andrew Phillips filled in admirably last week, and starting wide receivers Van Chew and Alec Lemon are both expected to play.

Lemon had a soft cast on his left hand this week, but Marrone said he was cleared to play. Marrone said Chew was feeling much better after struggling several weeks with a leg injury.

If anything happens to those two, freshman Adrian Flemming could be called upon.

“If I do get the opportunity to play this week, I’ve just got to go out there and execute and make plays,” said Flemming, from Ashburn, Va., who has seen only scout team action so far this season.

Junior Marcus Sales, the No. 3 wide receiver, could also find himself in a bigger role this week.

“We’ve just got to step up. Just play the role,” he said of himself and Flemming.

Suter said he feels the team is ready for its breakthrough moment.

“It’s definitely exciting. A lot of people didn’t think we’d be here. But the way we worked – all last year, all winter, all spring, all summer – we knew what we had in this program, and we were excited for this season," he said. "And it’s really started to take shape here. We’re just looking forward to getting the seventh win.”